Monmouth County Outdoor Water Restrictions Eased

MIDDLETOWN, NJ - With operating conditions at New Jersey American Water’s Swimming River Water Treatment Plant stabilized and close to normal, the company announced that Monmouth County customers can begin to water their lawns using sprinklers while remaining on a schedule of odd/even watering and only during the hours of 5 a.m. to 9 a.m., and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.

“Temporary repairs at our Swimming River Water Treatment Plant were completed last weekend and over the last few days, our ability to provide water to our customers in Monmouth County has been restored,” said Stephen P. Schmitt, vice president of operations for New Jersey American Water. “We thank our customers for their cooperation and patience as we worked to recover from this event. The odd/even watering will continue for the foreseeable future as we move forward with plans toward a permanent fix at our water treatment plant.”

Watering restrictions were necessary when a bridge holding three pipes at the company’s Swimming River Water Treatment Plant collapsed. New Jersey American Water strongly advises its Monmouth County customers to abide by the odd/even water use schedule and to conserve water wherever possible. Should water demands rise to levels that place water quality or fire protection at risk, more stringent water use restrictions would become necessary.

The odd/even watering schedule entails:

Outdoor water use between the hours of 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on odd-numbered days of the month if your street address is an odd number (i.e., 23 Oak St., 7 Maple Ave.)

Outdoor water use between the hours of 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on even-numbered days of the month if your street address is an even number (i.e., 6 Oak St., 354 Maple Ave.)

Exceptions are:

Watering of new sod or seed if daily watering is required (note: it is recommended that any planting of new sod or seed that has not already taken place be delayed until the fall)

Use of private wells for irrigation

Commercial uses of outdoor water, such as for nurseries, farm stands, power washing, plumbing, athletic fields, and car washes